


A Burnt Child

by Cdelphiki



Series: In For a Pound [5]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Baby Damian AU, Childhood Trauma, Fear, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Kid Jason Todd, Thunderstorms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:47:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25197181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cdelphiki/pseuds/Cdelphiki
Summary: Rain was the exact opposite of relaxing to 12-year-old Jason. All it did was remind him of all those times he had to sleep in it, shivering and soaked, with no hopes of getting dry any time soon.Even though he was living with Bruce Wayne now, and was fairly confident in his safety there, he couldn't help but jump every time the thunder cracked or the rain picked up.  At least there's another kid in the house.  And a dog. So he doesn't have to spend the stormy night alone.
Relationships: Jason Todd & Damian Wayne
Series: In For a Pound [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1334581
Comments: 31
Kudos: 553





	A Burnt Child

**Author's Note:**

> "A burnt child fears the fire" 
> 
> This takes place in a baby Damian AU where Damian's grown up with Bruce from infancy. He's 6 here, and Jason is 12. Takes place during [Precedent. ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18793915/chapters/44591638)

It was dumb.

No. Not dumb. 

It was really, really, exceptionally stupid.

Being afraid of a little rain was probably the lamest thing a person could possibly be afraid of.

What was even scary about storms?….. Anymore?

Jason had a _house_ now. 

Sure, it wasn’t like, forever or nothing. But it was at least for _now._ And _for now_ was long enough to protect him from the storm outside. 

And yet, here he was. Hiding under his comforter, trying to ignore the cacophony of noises outside. 

People who said rain was relaxing were high, Jason was fairly certain. High or really, _really_ crazy. Because the harsh static of the constant downpour only made Jason more anxious. Even the gentle pitter-patter of a drizzle was the prelude to the deafening onslaught of far too much rain for the city’s sewers to handle, and Jason couldn’t handle any of it. 

The crash of another bolt of lightning made Jason jump so hard, he nearly tumbled off his bed. His heart was hammering so hard, he was amazed no one could hear it. 

But then again, the rain outside was so loud, there was no way anyone could hear anything _but_ it.

And he was immensely grateful Bruce had skipped patrol. Because the last thing he wanted was for Bruce to come ‘check on him.’ Bruce might have thought he was sneaky whenever he poked his head in on Jason at 2 in the morning, but he _wasn’t._ And now Jason was happy, because the last thing he wanted was for Bruce to find him cowering under his covers, afraid of _a storm._

A freaking _storm._

It was insanely dumb. Jason knew why storms happened. He understood about cloud formation, positive and negative charges, and all that fun stuff. He’d read all about it in one of his school books. 

That didn’t stop his heart from racing or his hands from shaking. And when another bolt of lighting hit, this time probably only 500 yards from the Manor, Jason leapt to his feet. 

It was dumb. It was really, _really_ dumb, but he could not be alone anymore. 

He couldn’t. 

He needed… he didn’t know what he needed. He needed to not be alone. 

Before he could think better of it, Jason found himself standing in the hall, looking down at the doors ahead of him. There was Bruce’s room on one side. Door wide open, as he always left them to encourage them to wake him, or something. Jason just found it annoying, because it meant he couldn’t sneak past Bruce at night to go downstairs. 

Perhaps that was Bruce’s plan. 

On the left was Dick’s door. Shut, as always. And entirely unoccupied. Per the norm. Damian’s was next to it, and just barely cracked, so the dog could come in and out as he pleased. 

_The dog._

“Ace,” Jason whispered, trying to keep his voice quiet enough so not to wake Bruce. 

He couldn’t deal with Bruce right now. He might ask _questions._

And Jason did not want to talk about how the storms reminded him of being stuck outside in late fall, unable to find adequate shelter, freezing cold, soaked to the bone, and shivering while the rain kept coming. Didn’t want to think about how it took _days_ to fully dry out after that, nor how the ground was wet for a week. 

Or the case of pneumonia he’d developed, that landed him back in foster home for the third time. Stupid clinic being a rat.

Bruce would be super _caring_ and _understanding_ and he’d listen and hug Jason, probably. Then offer to stay up with him and watch movies, or drink hot cocoa. And Jason… kind of wanted that. But he _couldn’t handle_ it. He wanted to cry just _thinking_ about it, and Jason was so over crying. So freaking tired of doing it. 

The dog, though. The dog wouldn’t ask him questions. He’d just lay with Jason and be there for him. 

Ace was awesome like that.

But when Jason said, “Ace” again, this time a little louder, all he heard was the jingling of Ace’s tags. Deep inside Damian’s room. 

From experience, Jason knew Damian was a heavy sleeper. Like, a really heavy sleeper. One time he fell asleep on the couch, and he and Bruce continued talking at a normal level for an _hour,_ and Damian didn’t seem to notice one bit. Bruce was able to carry him up to bed afterward, all without Damian so much as stirring. 

It was wild.

Would totally get him killed, one day, but probably okay for him right now. As long as he was safe in the Manor, that was. With the literal Batman watching over him. 

Jason was kind of a little jealous of how deeply he could sleep. If only Jason could sleep through even the lightest footsteps passing his room at night. 

Or storms.

“Ace,” Jason whispered again, nudging the door open just enough so he could stick his head in. Once his eyes adjusted to the darker room, he had to blink. 

Because Ace wasn’t on the ground, where he normally spent the night, ‘guarding’ Damian. 

No. 

He was up in Damian’s bed, under the covers with him, tucked up against his side. 

And Damian was there, wide awake, looking right back at Jason.

“Jason?” he said, far too loudly for Jason’s liking. Considering Bruce’s door was _right there._ Like, five feet away!

A crack of lightning flashed outside Damian’s window. And even with the half a second warning, Jason couldn’t suppress the flinch at the loud crash that followed. “Sorry,” he said, slipping into Damian’s room and shutting the door more, in hopes that Bruce wouldn’t hear them talking, “I was just… uh.” 

The fuck _was_ he doing? He couldn’t tell Damian he was looking for the stupid dog because he was scared, now could he? What would Damian say to that? He’d probably laugh at him. 

Or start calling for Bruce to come fix it…

“Checking on Ace?” Damian asked, pushing himself up into a sitting position. Ace, in response, whined at Damian and pressed up against Damian’s side more, “Did you know he’s scared of storms?” 

Ace was afraid of storms, too? Why would he be scared of them? 

Well, he supposed the noises were very loud and Ace was a dog. Practically a baby. He didn’t understand what caused storms.

“Yeah,” Jason said, standing a little straighter and crossing his arms across his chest, “Yeah, I just wanted to make sure he was okay.” 

It was perfectly reasonable for _Ace_ to be afraid of them. That was a valid excuse. Poor Ace. 

Jason, however. He had no good excuse. It was just rain. And some thunder and lightning. 

_And trauma,_ Bruce’s voice whispered in the back of his head. 

Stupid fucking Bruce saying stupid fucking things like _that_ to him all the time. 

When another crack of thunder made Jason jump and bump up against the door behind him, Damian frowned. “He’s okay as long as he gets to sleep with someone,” Damian said, running a hand through Ace’s fur.

“Oh.” 

That made sense. Ace didn’t want to be alone, either. Why would _anyone_ want to be?

Because they weren’t being fucking stupid like Jason, probably. 

Jason wasn’t sure what to do now, though. Ace was with Damian and probably wouldn’t follow Jason, even if he asked. Ace was _Damian’s_ dog. Damian was Ace’s favorite person. He wouldn’t want Jason as a substitute. 

Maybe Jason could sneak past Bruce’s room real fast and go into one of the interior rooms downstairs. The theater, maybe. It had no windows. If he turned the TV on, he—

“You can join us if you want,” Damian said, eliciting another flinch from Jason. 

Stupid fucking storm making him all jumpy. 

Good thing Bruce wasn’t there to see, he’d get his dumb little frown on his face that said he wanted to _fix_ things, similar to the one Damian wore, actually... But Bruce would ask dumb questions like ‘what do you need to feel safer?’

Stupid fucking Bruce. Who made him like that?

Staying in Damian’s room would be admitting he was scared, and he _wasn’t…_

…admitting it.

Aloud.

“That’s okay, I’m gonna—“

“It’ll make Ace feel better,” Damian cut in, “he likes it when more of his people are near. Sometimes we go into Dad’s room.”

“Oh.” That actually made sense. Ace was a guard dog. If the storm scared him, he probably liked knowing as many of his people were safe as possible. 

Jason still wasn’t convinced _he_ was one of Ace’s people, but Damian kept insisting he was, so maybe…

“Are you sure?” He didn’t exactly want to crowd Damian’s space, either.

“Yeah.” Damian pulled his blanket over, making room on the other side of Ace for Jason to crawl in. 

Figaro, Damian’s cat, had been underneath the blanket, too, apparently. Jason hadn’t even noticed her, but she protested loudly when the blanket over her moved. Her collar jingled when she jumped down off the bed and crossed the room.

She brushed past Jason, tail up in the air, just as snooty as always, and paused at the door. When Jason didn’t open it for her instantly, she mewed at him. 

_Loudly._

It was like she was _trying_ to wake everyone in the house, just like she’d been woken.

Jason opened the door for her and she raced across the hall into Bruce’s room. Based on the startled snort Bruce made, she hopped up on him. 

Stupid cat _was_ trying to wake everyone.

“Figaro,” Jason heard Bruce mumble, his bedsprings creaking for a second as he grumbled something else Jason couldn’t quite make out.

Jason held his breath, willing Bruce to _not_ get up and check on everyone. But when the bed settled again, and no footsteps followed, Jason let it out in a quiet sigh.

“Okay,” he whispered, “but I’m gonna get my own blanket. Be right back.”

On tip toes, Jason rushed back to his room and grabbed his comforter. It was huge, so he wrapped himself up in it and let the rest of it drag behind him, like an oversized cape. 

Was this what Batman felt like all the time? His cape seemed like it would be heavy, even if it didn’t drag the ground. How did he even run around with it? Jason could barely walk down the hall without tripping all over himself.

The storm outside was already calming down, but Jason knew there were several more cells following the one passing. He’d looked at the radar. The storms weren’t going to stop until well after breakfast.

Ace would definitely need the company all night, Jason was sure.

He was extra careful not to wake Bruce on his way back to Damian’s room and very quick to crawl up into the bed, opposite from Damian. 

Jason wasn’t used to sleeping with other people in the same room, much less the same bed, but Damian had crashed in Jason’s room once already. It hadn’t been bad.

Maybe a little nice.

He would have never thought it’d be so easy to fall asleep with someone else in the room. 

Even though Damian was a heavy sleeper, there was something relaxing about knowing someone else was there. Someone Jason could trust not to be a jerk to him. Damian was just a little _kid._ And a pretty nice one, at that. 

Staying in Wayne Manor was turning him _soft…_

“We can watch a movie," Damian mumbled, from where he’d curled up next to Ace again, clearly half asleep already.

“You said you’re not allowed.” The last thing Jason wanted was to get Damian in trouble. 

He wasn’t quite sure _how_ Bruce punished Damian, since usually all he did was say something like ‘knock it off’ or raise his eyebrows at Damian, and Damian stopped whatever he was doing. Even though he doubted it’d happen, he’d feel _terrible_ if he got Damian hurt just cause he was too scared to fucking sleep. 

“Dad won’t care,” Damian mumbled, “there’s no school tomorrow.” 

Jason looked at Damian skeptically. The rule was ‘no tv after bedtime.’ Jason wasn’t sure it _mattered_ what day of the week it was.

Damian was, apparently, confident in his opinion Bruce wouldn’t care, because he sat up and grabbed the remote, then handed it to Jason.

It took Damian telling him twice more that it was ‘really fine, just pick something,’ for Jason to actually power on the projector and flip through the kids movie files. 

In the end, he found an old cartoon for them to watch instead of a movie, and snuggled down in his blanket, all cocooned up so only his face was showing. 

Predictably, Damian fell asleep within 7 seconds of the first episode playing. But the gentle snores from him, as well as the warm weight of Ace against Jason’s side, did help Jason relax a ton. 

The storm kept raging outside. At times, the wind howled against the windows, and the rain fell so hard it sounded like hundreds of people were on the fucking roof, stomping. Not to mention the thunder and lightning, which continued to hit nearby. 

Even with all that going on, Jason found himself jumping less and less. 

And about four episodes in, he started to doze. 

Sleeping while it was raining wasn’t something Jason had done in years. 

But that night, he slept right through the rest of the storm. If the thunder kept up, Jason didn’t notice it. 

When he was finally roused by Ace, well after breakfast, the sun was peeking through the curtains and birds were chirping outside.

Damian yawned dramatically as he stretched and said, “See. Told you Dad wouldn’t care.” 

“Yeah.” 

Maybe he wouldn’t care next time there were storms, either. 

Because… Jason had to admit. He’d never felt as at peace as he did that morning. 

He never wanted that feeling to end.

**Author's Note:**

> I actually want to write several more installations of this, following Jason's fear of storms through time to see how he deals with it. I'm marking this complete, though, just in case I never get around to finishing it. =\ Also, several of the ideas I have outlined are actually in the 'future' from where we are currently in the series, so it'll be a hot minute before those go up. We can't go getting spoilers about the future, now can we??? :)
> 
> Also, I created a new series to put all these side stories in, so the original series can be just for the long fics. I went ahead and posted this to the original series for now, so everyone gets the subscription email. I'm undecided on how I'm going to handle that in the future. Might keep doing this and eventually remove it from 'In For a Pound" and leave it just in the "Pennyverse Side Stories" series. We'll see. I don't want all these side stories, which will be jumping all over the place, cluttering up the main series and messing with the chronology. 
> 
> Thanks for reading and commenting!!! <3 you guys


End file.
